The invention concerns a camouflage means, including at least one releasable active material in at least one container to interrupt the line of sight, as well as a camouflage procedure to use this camouflage means.
In general a means of camouflage serves to disrupt the line of sight between a sensor and a target for military purposes. Modern sensors for reconnaissance, target acquisition, target tracking, weapon employment and weapon effects analysis thereby use the following areas of the electromagnetic spectrum:
Ultraviolet range (UV range) to exploit the fluorescence effect among other things,
Visible range (VIS range) for the human observer as well as optical reconnaissance and targeting devices,
Low, middle and high infra-red range (IR range) for laser, image and residual light amplifiers, active infra-red devices and heat imaging devices, and
Radar range, primarily I, I/J and J bands for battlefield radars as well as I/J and K band for ground-air radars.
The following table shows the electromagnetic spectrum that is used for military purposes.
The combat power of the opponent on the modern battlefield can be significantly reduced, if success can be attained in not allowing hostile reconnaissance, target acquisition, target tracking and weapon guidance sensors to be effectively coordinated with the combat activities of the combat forces or to significantly affect their employment capabilities in an adverse manner. Known means are camouflage smoke which is effective in the UV, visible and/or IR ranges and chaff clouds, including electrically conducting fibers, like tin foil strips and chaff, which are suited to shroud the radar range.
It is basically possible to emplace by means of artillery or aircraft a large area smoke wall and/or many chaff clouds that form a wall. In the case of emplacement by means of artillery, coordination with ground forces is possible to be sure, but there results an intolerable endangerment of friendly forces from the falling round cases and active material containers, since the smoke and/or chaff clouds must also be emplaced on friendly territory. In addition, new rounds or rockets for the active material must be developed for the artillery that enable the active material to sway on a parachute and which will require a lot of technical effort or at least be costly, or drones can be employed, whereby the cargo area is probably too small for large area line of sight disruption or camouflage and a short term solution, especially for chaff dispensing, is not possible. The use of drones like the use of aircraft also, on the one hand, requires the dropping of the active material on parachutes and, on the other hand, coordination of the employment with combat troops can only be achieved with great difficulty for reasons of air-space management and timely availability. Finally, the use of vehicle-mounted smoke generators which have been introduced by many NATO partners is also possible; they: (a) provide a long-lasting smoke cloud, but until now only an infra-red smoke cloud, (b) enable the use of chaff but only in limited numbers, and can only be employed in a preplanned manner which makes coordination with the use of combat forces problematic. The use of vehicle-mounted smoke generators is also costly, since the vehicle are special and special personnel.
The task of this invention is therefore to overcome the disadvantages of the state of technology, i.e., to make available a camouflage means and a camouflage procedure by means of which: (a) at least a portion of the line of sight of hostile modern sensors for reconnaissance, target acquisition, target tracking, and weapon guidance can be taken away, (b) a time and space coordination with friendly forces can be facilitated, and (c) no special personnel or operational vehicles are required so costs can be saved.
A camouflage means of the type to solve the task of this invention is thereby characterized by the container being able to be moved when required and the active material being capable of remote activation.
A preferred embodiment of the invention is thereby characterized by the camouflage means including at least one pyrotechnical smoke generator to produce at least one smoke cloud for the purpose of line of sight disruption in the UV, visible and/or IR ranges.
The smoke generator can thereby incorporate a smoke pot.
The camouflage means in the invention can also incorporate at least one chaff dispenser to produce at least one chaff cloud for the purpose of disrupting the line of sight in the radar range.
The invention also proposes, that the container be equipped with an antenna for remote activation by radio, that the container incorporate a trigger for immediate activation, and/or that the container be equipped with a tripod, preferably folding, and/or ground spikes.
The invention provides for the container being able to float or that the container is capable of being anchored on the battlefield.
It is further preferred in the invention, that the container manifest an initial code by means of which it can be controlled.
The container of the invention can contain the active material in the form of several sub-munitions which are preferably ignitable individually or in groups and/or a second code by means of which it can be precisely controlled.
The invention also proposes that several containers can be connected to each other.
A camouflage procedure which uses the camouflage means of the invention to solve the task posed for the invention is thereby characterized by the container being brought to the desired location by a transport vehicle, like a truck, and there off- loaded.
The container can either be thrown off or erected.
If the container is not used, it can either be retrieved or undergo emergency destruction, if necessary.
Finally, the invention prefers, that several smoke generators and/or chaff dispensers be distributed across a battlefield and ignited either individually or by groups in coordination with combat forces and depending on the weather conditions.
Underlying the invention is the surprising knowledge, that the battlefield can be disrupted by pyrotechnical smoke generators and/or chaff dispensers which are preplanned in probable battle areas, even in the weapons effect coverage area of hostile weapons and in watery areas, and that are distributed by transport vehicles and activated, when required, by remote control. The appropriate active materials, depending on the tactics to be used in either the UV, visible and/or IR range with smoke and/or in the radar range by radar reactive chaff, are able to be coordinated with combat units because of the provision of remote control. The invention also makes possible the staggered individual or group activation of several sub-munitions of one active material container and/or active material containers, whereby the coordination with combat forces is improved and consideration of the weather conditions is made possible.
Finally the camouflage means of this invention involves a bulk consumable good of reasonable cost which can be used by all units without special personnel or operational vehicles and which can be retrieved after non-use or undergo emergency destruction by remote control, if necessary.